Machine for gassing and closing can bodies



Sept. 2, 1941. A. M. CAMERON MACHINE FOR GASSING AND CLOSING CAN BODIES Filed April 26, 1939 3 Sheets-Sheet l ATTORNEY.

Sept. 2, W41. A. M. CAMERON 9 MACHINE 1 0R GASSING AND CLOSING CAN BODIES Filed April 26, 1959 I 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INV ENT OR.

CZZam/Ybmezwm BY I 7' E Z ATTORNEY.

Sept. 2, 1941. A. M. CAMERON MACHINE FOR GASSING AND CLOSING CAN BODIES Filed April 26, 1959 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 ATTORNEY.

Patent ed Sept. 2.194 1 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE I FOR CLOSING CAN I Allan M. Cameron, Chicago, 111., assignor to Gain- ,eron Can Machine ration of Illinois Chicago, 111., a corpo- Application April :6, 1939, Serial No. 270,099

. 1 claim. (or. sac-ea) This invention relates in general to machines for closing can bodies by applying caps thereto after they have been filled with food products or the like, and aims to provide a machine of this general type which will be capable of vacuumizing the bodies and then replacing the withdrawn air with an inert gas before the closing operation takes place. This application constitutes an improvement upon the type of machine disclosed in my Patent No.'2,l88,939, issued February 6, 1940. a

The various methods of vacuumizing and gas-.- sing can bodies hereafter proposed have been more or less cumbersome and impractical for commercial employment, have involved eitherexpensive mechanisms or slow hand operations,v J and have resulted in a substantial loss of the gas employed, thus increasing the cost of the method.

The primary purpose of my present invention is to provide in a closing machine, preferably of the double seaming type, provisions for withdrawing the air from the filled bodies, replacing the withdrawn air with an inert gas, closing the body, and recovering the gas surrounding the closed bodies in the turret pockets.

My invention also aims to accomplish the above purposes without materially increasing the cost of production or operation of a standard vacuumizing body closing machine and to perwill later beexplained. The length of the shaft I may be adjusted by a turnbuckle adjustment device II to accurately dispose the turret at the requisite height. The shaft is equipped with a star wheel i2 through which the turret is intermittentlyindexed in a counter-clockwise direction by a roller i3, mounted upon an arm i4 pro- Jecting radially from a constantly driven shaft, ii.

The can bodies are fed from the filling machine toward the turret along aftableor guideway It by an endless chain conveyor l'l equipped at spaced intervals with'feed dogs i8. Near the delivery end of the feed chain, an elevating table l8 normally positioned flush with the supporting surface of the guideway i6 is supported upon a reciprocating plunger or post 21 by which the can bodies are successively lifted into the aligned pockets of the turret during their final forward form the additional operations without reducing the normal production speed of such a machine.

3-3 of Fig. 2.

Referring to the drawings more in detail, reference character 4 indicates generally the supporting frame work of, the machine, only a fragment of which is here shown, and 5 indicates a vertically disposed shaft mounted in the frame and carrying at its upper end the turret 8 provided with a series of peripherally opening pockets 1 adapted to receive the filled can bodies 8 and the caps 9 tube double seamed onto the bodies, as

" Other purposes and advantageous features of the perimeter of the turret, and, likewise, this I theturret and the opening through which it pro-" movements induced by the feed chain.

The caps 8 are fed from the cap magazine 22 along a guideway 23 into the turret pockets above 'the can bodies. The cap f'eeding'mechanism,

construction, is not'here which is of well-known illustrated.

A hermetically sealed housing indicated generally by 24 partially surrounds the turret and comprises a bottom'plate 2S and a top plate 29, both machined to have a sealing engagement with the bottom and top surfaces respectively of the turret so that leakage between the interior of housing 24 and atmosphere above and beneath the turret is precluded.

The opening into the chamberthrough which the turret projects. is sealed-at the intake side of the, turret by-an arcuate sealing plate 21 conforming to the curvature of and snugly fitting opening at the discharge side is sealed by an arcuate sealing plate 28 also conforming to and snugly fitting-the perimeter of the turret. It will be manifest, therefore, that a sealing fit between Jects is provided entirely around the turret.

The sealed chamber within the housing 24 is divided by another sealing plate 29 conforming to and snugly fitting the perimeter of .the turret into a vacuumizing chamber 3i and a gassing chamber 32. Each of the sealing plates 21, 28 and 29 is removably bolted to the housing so as to be capable of being independently fitted against v the perimeter of the turret to provide a tightseal.

The removability also permits the regrinding of/ the sealing surfaces of the plates to overcome 58 leakage resulting from surface wear. As the can bodies enter the housing and pass the sealing plate 21, they are brought into communication with the chamber 3| to which a partial vacuum is applied by any suitable vacuum producing unit through a suction pipe 33 opening into the top of chamber 3|. The air. contained in thecan bodies along with the product with which the body is filled is consequently withdrawn leaving the bodies and the product in a vacuumized condition.

As the vacuumized bodies upon subsequent movement of the turret pass the sealing plate 29, they are exposed to the interior of chamber 32, which is filled with any desired inert gas supplied under a slight pressure from any suitable source of supply through a pipe 3| opening into the chamber. The space in the container occupied by air previously to the vacuumizing operation is therefore immediately filled with the inert gas.

By successive movements of the turret the gassed body still within the gassing chamber is positioned at the closing station where, by means 01' a vertically reciprocating plunger 35, the body and its superposed cap are lifted into seaming position in which the cap is held by the body snugly against the undersurface of the seaming head 36 to be double seamed onto the body by a plurality of revolving seaming rollers 31 in a manner well known in this art. The seaming mechanism is driven through gear trains, including the gears 38 and 39, from the drive shaft 4|, extending upwardly into the gassing chamber.

When the body with the gas contained therein has been closed by double seaming the cap thereonto, as above indicated, the plunger 35 is retracted and the closed bodyis carried by the turret past the sealing plate 28. This plate is provided with a passage 42 which is connected by a pipe or conduit 43 with a suitable'suction mechanism by which the gas contained in the turret pockets around the closed cans is withdrawn for conservation and reuse as the pockets are successively exposed to the open end 01' the passage 42. In this manner, the gas surroundingthe cans in the pockets, which would otherwise be discharged to atmosphere and lost, is conserved and made available for reuse in the machine.

When a closed body has passed beyond the sealing plate 28, it is discharged from the machine into a delivery chute H by a revolving discharge arm 45 driven in the usual manner have provided a machine having a closed chamber containing the closing mechanism and into which the filled bodies and thecaps are fed in succession by a turret and from which the closed bodies are delivered. The chamber is divided into a vacuumizing compartment to which the open can bodies are first exposed to withdraw the air therefrom and a gassing compartment to which the bodies are transferred from the vacuumizing compartment. In the gassing compartment the withdrawn air is' replaced by the inert gas, and the body is closed by double seaming the cap thereonto. The closed bodies are then delivered from the machine, and the gas contained in the pockets around the bodies is withdrawn and conserved for reuse.

The machine is continuous in operation and is capable of. being operated at high speed to successively vacuumize gas, close and deliver the bodies. The machine is simple in construction and economical to operate, and is superior in 4 ing through which said turret extends, said turret having a sealing contact with the top and bottom walls of said housing, arcuate sealing through gearing l8 froma transverse shaft 41 which also drives the conveyor chain II. The shaft 41 in turn is driven through gearing or a chain 48 from the main power shaft (not shown) ofthe machinel From the foregoing, it will be apparent that I -walls removably attached to the housing and projecting from the sides of said opening into sealing engagement with the turret, a sealing wall removably attached to and projecting inwardly from a wall of the housing and spaced from the entrance'side of said opening and having sealing contact with said turret to provide a vacuum chamber with which the turret pockets are successively brought into communication, a suction pipe communicating with the chamber for vacuumizing said chamber, a gassing chamber into communication with which said turret pockets are moved from said vacuum chamber, means for supplying an inert gas to said gassing chamber, can closing mechanism located in said gassing chamber, and a suction passage with which each pocket is communicated after leaving the gassing chamber and through which gas remaining in such pockets is withdrawn.

ALLAN M. CAMERON. 

